‘Hideous’ catfish species that tricks females into having sex with them found in Amazon river

HORNED-UP catfish that literally “catfish” their mates by tricking them into sex have been discovered in the Amazon rainforest.

The sneaky fish pretend to be looking after eggs to woo the opposite sex – but it’s actually a saucy ploy to secure a river romp.

This image depicts the Ancistrus kellerae species of catfishJonathan W. Armbruster

Scientists have found six species of the new catfish, which they described as “hideously adorable”.

The hideous part is thanks to the bizarre tentacles that cover the faces of these newly discovered fish.

“We discovered six new species of really cool catfish from the Amazon and Orinoco River basins,” said Lesley de Souza, a conservation scientist and ichthyologist at Chicago’s Field Museum, and lead author of a paper in Zootaxa describing the new species.

“They have tentacles on their snouts, they have spines that stick out from their heads, almost like claws, to protect themselves and their nests, and their body is covered with bony plates like armour.

Here’s what the new Ancistrus patronus catfish species looks likeJonathan W. Armbruster

“They’re warriors, they’re fish superheroes,” Lesley added.

The new catfish are all part of the genus Acistrus, which is know as the bristlenose catfish.

They’re river-dwellers that measure between three and six inches long – with males marked by tentacles that “erupt” from their snouts.

Although the tentacles look disgusting, they’re actually designed to convince females that their owners would make good dads.